When do you NOT buy a (limited) doll? What are your principles/critical stance?

Man, with dolls I am so critical.. I don't just think about how much I love the doll, but how well it would sell if I don't love it. That's why I didn't end up getting Sphaler. I thought there was a chance I would love him more in person, than in the pics, but he hasn't been very popular in sales yet tbh, so I didn't go ahead.. It's easier for the soom dolls for me, than for most LE's, because they have REALLY spiffy things like the feet, and they don't always come with faceups. Whereas, the dollmore ones, I am looking at, but I might not like the faceup or whatever.. and it's like, is it worth it to destroy that faceup, or would I rather try get teh body secondhand or something, along the way. I wish for LE body thingies, they would be more lax on the faces >_>

 

I can impulse if I wish... in fact I just did for an Impl. But there is a little voice in my head saying, "Can you afford this?" What really pushed me over the edge this time is that I needed another male body to use as a model for an artist alley. I planned to treat myself to a doll after the convention anyway. My dealer has a limited number on hand... so it was either now or much later. I went for now because I could really use him and a couple of commissioners are in the process of paying me so I had some money in my paypal anyway.

But with the expensive dolls... the voice of reason usually wins... or we compromise and I only get the head. I figure I could always get the body later. Heads aren't so bad. They are usually just a bit over $100.

 

If I don't like it, I don't buy it.
If I can't afford it, I don't buy it.
If it's something I'm pretty sure will be around later to buy, I probably won't buy it right that minute. Occasionally this has resulted in me having to hunt around on the Marketplace for items (as shown by my WTB threads in every forum) but hunting down stuff you want is part of the fun of the hobby, to me.

I have zero interest in being "first person on my block to get the brand new release". I couldn't care less about that. So you can bet that when you see me buying something that's just released, it's because I'm utterly in love with the sculpt, and no other reason.

 

As a rule, I already don't pay much attention to LEs. But, in the event that I end up falling for one without realizing, this is how it would go...

Can I afford it?
If I can already see that I won't be able to gather up the funds before the order period's over, I don't even try. I know my financial situation, and I know how much I usually get per month. If it doesn't add up, it's a no-go.

Do I *need* her? Is there a cheaper/non-LE "look-alike" I could be just as happy with?
Simple -- would not having this particular LE really be something I'd get upset over? If I find that there's no way I could "replace" this doll with a non-LE, and I feel that I need her desperately, I'm more likely to buy her.

Do I really want all of it?
Simple again -- is there ANYTIHNG about her I'm err'ing about? Altering LEs is almost taboo to some, so if there's something that I feel I'll want to change, that makes me want her less.

Will it hold it's resale value?
As materialistic and cold as this sounds, I hate having to resell dolls that are unpopular and no one wants. If the preview pictures got a lot of attention, and lots of people are looking forward to the release, I'll be morel likely to buy it -- since Ik now that, if I don't like it, or wind up needing to sell it, it won't take me too long to find a buyer (and I won't lose as much money.)

Only if all the right conditions are met in all of those would I buy an LE.

 

Unless I can replace them as a character on my list I have and they work, I dont plan to get any more unplanned molds. Infact im selling some of my more impulse ones actually XD. Im being more careful to just get the ones i truely desire.

 

I only buy the doll if it has a potential for a character of mine. I do consider on its availability above all else if it passes that test. Seriously, that's the only thing that keeps me sane and from clicking that 'buy' button every time I see a pretty face.

I think though.. I would prefer that the dolls I want to be NOT limited so I can have the freedom of choosing when I want to sell or buy it without having to worry about whether I can buy it back. >_>

 

Truthfully, I don't much care whether a doll is limited or not, I only buy what I absolutely love & only then if I have the money or know that I'll have money coming in from layaways.

As far as loving a doll, I generally go with my first impression. If a doll makes my heart beat faster & I constantly dream about it, then I know that doll's for me. That's not to say I haven't made a few mistakes over the years but in general, when it comes time to thin my collection, I have to think long & hard about who to part with as I bought my dolls out of love.

So limited or not doesn't really play into my decision whether or not to get a doll. Love is the deciding factor.

 

Dolls must appeal to both my heart and mind. The senses always fall first, but if my mind agrees (and my intellect is VERY difficult to convince), my imagination naturally makes a place for them in my doll family/storylines/continuity. That was the case with 2 of my 3 dolls -- neither were existing imaginary characters, but I fell in love with the sculpts enough, that the chars appeared and demanded to inhabit the dolls, so I had to get them. I've only had them for at most a few months, but I love them completely and don't regret them one bit.

I really liked Luts' DoA 5th Anniv Abadon and Soom Sphaler, and I had second thoughts about not getting LE Abadon for his gorgeous armour -- but ultimately passed on them because they just didn't quite make the cut. They didn't fit in with my doll family and I have no character for them. The same with many, many Volks limiteds -- I wondered about re-shelling my original character (currently inhabiting DoT Lahoo), but no Volks sculpt is calling to me in the same way. As much as I crave owning a Volks limited SD13+ boy (they're all so beautiful!), I'll have to wait for the right one.

 

I'm going to second everything Andie said, with one small addition:

For me it's not just a matter of affording it. My personal requirement is: anything I spend on dolls I have to put into savings. For example, if the doll is $500 I need another $500 for savings. This eases "buyer's guilt" and helps out my savings account. So can I actually afford $1000 for a doll?

 

Kinda easy ^^;

If I can't afford him, he won't come home, even if I'm all about it.

If I can afford him but the thought of not owning him does not make me go , he won't go home.

If I can afford him and he makes me go and the thought of not owning him makes me go , he's a winner.

This logic worked 5 times out of 6!

 

I have a very specific cast of characters I'm trying to build in dolly form, so as gorgeous as LEs are they don't tend to sway me.

Though, I DID seriously consider one of SOOM's unicorn kids because it bore a striking resemblance to one of my characters. But I came to the ultimate conclusion that I would bond with her more if I constructed her myself.

 

I don't buy limited doll when...

1.) they have joints I don't like (I'm picky about what kind of joints I find attractive)
2.) the sculpt doesn't fit any of my characters or jump out at me as being something I can't live without
3.) they have weird colored resin that can't be sanded (I broke this rule twice with Vesuvia and now Luna. I ended up getting rid of Vesuvia for this reason. Luna will most likely stay since she passes #2 as being a sculpt I can't live without)

 

Being able to afford is a big one for me - I have to check and see if I can actually pay the amount that's being asked for it. If I can't: well, tough cookies. I'm not putting it on credit.

Secondly, I'm one of those people who is an "owner-for-life" or something like that. The dolls that I buy, I keep for a very, very long time (my oldest one on an upwards of 5 years now!), so I take that into account, because if I can live without seeing their face every day, I probably won't buy it.

Third, I travel. A lot. So I'm trying to keep my doll family small so that they can travel on the planes with me. I'm at my limit at the moment (5), and they all can still fit pretty well in my carry on. If I get another one, I may have to sell one to keep my quota. So it's kind of like that - I have a quota of 5, so is the doll I'm looking at really worth buying AND is it worth giving up another one of my dolls for?

 

Usually before I buy the doll I would ask myself; Is it worth it? Do I really want to spent that much money on this one doll?

I have a budget on how much I spent every month on my doll, and getting a new doll would have to make me recalculate the amount that I spend and will spent in the future.
Its not just money that come into concern, space as well, my room is pretty small and I usually have to think twice before getting any new things, because eventually it'll end up stuffed somewhere in the corners of my room.

The recent LE doll that caught my attention and utmost interest was Iplehouse's Magician Chase. HE.IS.GORGEOUS. But the only thing that stop me from clicking the 'checkout' button was his price, that amount of dough is equal to nearly 5 months of my doll spending budget. This made me think again and again, in the end, I dont think I'll be getting him at all, no matter how tempting he is.

Mainly because I dont really want his extra chimera parts, so buying him with some parts I dont really need is such a waste of money... I could sell it but... its such a hassle >.> he's quite pale without his body blush and face-up, I dont mind getting the face-up but I prefer not to body blush my dolls, once the blush is damage or scratch, I dont think I'll be able to repair it (newb here).

I rather wait for his Basic edition to come out, he will have more choices in face-up and clothes by then, then I wont have a second notion on getting him for now, I just save up and wait for that time to come.

 

I only buy limiteds when they have sculpts that really catch my interest, and also it depends if I have the time needed to save up. My first doll was a not-so-popular limited, and I had enough time to save up. I should be getting a Soom Teenie Gem also, but that's a reward from my parents - I'll never be able to save in time! ;D

 

Mostly I don't end up caring as much as I thought I would for LE dolls. The only Soom that I've liked, I liked mostly for sentimental reasons. XD I enjoy my birthday and so when Chrom came out as the May LE I was sad that I didn't have money to get the doll, but as time goes on I like him less.

Mostly its a concern of price, because I don't make much to spend on dolls most of the time. The only LE doll I STILL want and will probably always want and never have was a DOD DOI Kalix. O-O I still want it, I frequently just go to the site and whimper because just as I was just getting my first doll, there was Kalix, and I had nothing to put towards getting one.

But for the greater portion, I have no desire for LE dolls, because there are so many lovely standard dolls.

 

Sometimes the price of limited doll is much higher than it's original price.
When I think it dosen't worth that much, I will not buy it.
Of course, I will never buy a doll which I don't like or I really can't afford at that time.

 

For me it's usually: NO LIMITEDS WOMAN, YOU HAVE NO JOB. XD
But as most people know, Alk and Yrie from Soom came out this month and I have been waiting to see what they looked like for ages and they were too cute to resist. But I knew I couldn't get one, so my mom actually offered to buy them for me for my birthday/Christmas. Which is awesome. So that's really the only reason I'm getting them.

I think when I have a job though, I will still say no to limiteds unless the totally BLOW me away. Like with Alk and Yrie, I almost cried when I saw them 'cause I knew I couldn't buy them. So unless I get THAT kind of effect from future limiteds, my wallet is safe from them. :P

 

I tend to be pretty strict with myself when it comes to buying dolls. My main rules are that I have a character in mind already, a vague idea of how they'll look (at least) and that I've spend a good couple of months looking up photos of the mold and still find myself wanting it. I don't really like the idea of selling any of my dolls, so this tends to be my fail-safe trick to not buying the wrong mold for a character. It's worked so far.

This does though leave me at a problem when it comes to limited dolls, especially the Soom monthlies. Fortunately I tend to be quite picky with the dolls so for the most part it hasn't been too much of an issue. Money does tend to come into it as well, I'm still bummed out that I couldn't buy Sooms grey Onyx when she came out.

Which is pretty much one of the reasons when Bygg was released I bit the bullet and dug into my savings to get one. I'm a bit nervous that I won't bond when he does arrive but I figure it'll be easier to sell the little guy on if that happens, then if I hadn't bought him and then realising I really did want one and trying to get one on the second hand market. Still a limited dolls is going to have to be seemingly perfect in all ways for me to drop the cash on it impulsively.

 

This choice is rather easy for me: I won't buy a limited that doesn't call to me as one of my characters, simple as that. If it does but I can't afford it before the ordering period ends, then it's a no-go. I know I'd pay a premium, but there's always the second hand market. I'm not about to put buying a limited before meeting my monthly bills.

There have been so many limiteds that I adore - the first that pops into my head is Soom Eliv. I luckily missed the ordering period, but then one popped up for sale again when someone canceled his or her order. I was so tempted by her cute face and fishy parts, but in the end I reminded myself of my "purpose."

If I had different goals for my collection I would think much differently. Of course, I'd also probably have an empty wallet.